Installation ceremony of IWCJB
Inner Wheel Club of Johor Bahru
22 January 2022
Inner Wheel Club of Johor Bahru (IWC JB) has been installed, finally!
On 22nd January 2022 IWCJB had its Charter Installation amongst the glitz and glamour of the Gatsby theme. Due to the COVID-19 situation, it was a simple, small event graced by District Chairman (DC) Shamini Nair. This has been a long-awaited event, prolonged due to being cancelled a few times for reasons ranging from translation of the constitution from English to Bahasa Malaysia to the Governments Movement Control Order restrictions.
The event was hosted by Vice President (VP) Nattassha and her husband Mr Balakrishnan in their beautiful home. The MC for the evening was Latha Pillay. She kept the event on schedule, tied up all the parts effortlessly whilst maintaining smooth transitions and kept the audience engaged throughout. The evening commenced with the lighting of the candle and recitation of the Friendship poem by VP Natassha.
DC Shamini presented the Regalia to President Sumathi amidst tears of joy and relief. The DC’s speech was simple yet loaded with wisdom, re-iterating the importance of friendship and touching on President Sumathi’s role as Charter President. This was followed by the presentation of badges to all the members present by President Sumathi. Treasurer Amy, a very close friend of President Sumathi, in her speech spoke of the various qualities that make President Sumathi a good leader and how she finally started the Inner Wheel club of JB.
President Sumathi’s speech was a tear jerker, spoken straight from the heart [there was nothing on paper] in which, she highlighted her journey from attending installations with her sister Latha from IWC Penang to finally starting a club in JB after almost fifteen years. She also accentuated the role of NR Ambika, DNR Parimala and IIWBD Datin Seetha in setting up this club and thanked them for their encouragement and guidance.
Finally, she thanked all the members for their support without which nothing would have been possible. Gifts were presented to Mr Ram Prasad and Mr. Balakrishnan as a token of appreciation for their role in getting IWCJB up and rolling. Mr. Ram’s assistance in the translation and Mr. Balakrishnan’s help with the Registrar of Societies as well as auditing the club’s accounts have been vital in the setting up of IWCJB. Mr. Balakrishnan in his closing speech encouraged IWCJB to increase membership and continue the good work.
After the formal ceremony, tea/coffee was served along with delicious canapes, salads and sandwiches. There was a video presentation created by Kitty, President Sumathi’s daughter and a lucky draw. The grand finale was a performance by the JB-sisters. They sang ‘I’m so excited’, a song by the Pointer sisters. This was directed and conducted by Marlene who also played the piano while singing along. It was indeed an evening brimming with emotions, love, joy and laughter.
Seema Unnithan